EE TV’s Big BBC Shake-Up: Say Goodbye To Recordings

BT / EE TV are about to make a big change that will affect the way many of their customers watch and record BBC programmes.

Starting August 27, 2024, if you use EE TV’s Pro Box in Internet Mode (which streams channels over broadband instead of an aerial), your BBC recordings won’t work like they used to.

Instead of simply playing your recorded shows from the box’s hard drive (which is what you would expect from, well, a recording) –  you’ll now be directed automatically to BBC iPlayer to watch them.

This might sound like a small tweak, but it has major implications for affected users – such as not being able to keep recorded shows indefinitely, and not being able to watch some of the content at all – even though you apparently “recorded” it.

This change follows a similar move EE TV made with ITV content last year, and it’s part of a broader trend in the TV industry that’s slowly changing how we access – and keep (or rather, don’t) content. 

Here’s what you need to know about these upcoming changes.

EE TV: The Evolution from BT TV

EE TV is the rebranded successor to BT TV, a change that occurred in 2023 when BT decided to consolidate its consumer brands under the EE banner.

Despite the new name and branding, EE TV’s services remained largely similar to BT TV’s previous offerings, with the main addition being a custom Apple TV 4K option alongside the traditional set-top boxes (the EE TV 4K Pro box and its Mini version).

One of the most distinctive features of EE TV (and previously BT TV) has been its Pro Box and its Internet Mode.

This mode allows users to stream Freeview channels directly via broadband, without needing a traditional aerial.

But while that’s also available from competitors such as Sky Stream, EE TV’s Pro Box offers the unique ability to record these internet-streamed channels to local storage, providing users with a flexible viewing experience that combines the best of both streaming and traditional TV worlds.

Other broadband-based streaming devices don’t have any local storage, therefore they don’t let you record anything to the device (Sky Stream has some very limited cloud-recording options, but those are only available with a small number of channels).

The New BBC Recording Rules

BT and EE TV customers across the UK have been receiving emails this week, detailing upcoming changes.

The message states:

“As you’re watching EE TV in Internet Mode (without an aerial), the way you watch your BBC recordings will change.

From August 21 [This has now been pushed to August 27), your BBC recordings will launch through the BBC iPlayer app. There’s no change to how you’ll record a programme, or where it will be stored.”

The e-mail goes on to warn that some content will no longer be available, that there may be a 15-minute delay before recordings are playable, and that availability may expire quickly in some cases.

According to EE, the new system means that if a programme isn’t available on iPlayer – either because it hasn’t been added (as is often the case with some news and local programmes) or has expired (most programmes are only available on iPlayer for a set number of days or months) – then it won’t be watchable, even if it has been “recorded” by the user.

This change effectively transforms the nature of recording from a user-controlled archive (going all the way back to the days of VCRs) to a time-limited bookmark system, heavily dependent on the BBC’s own content policies for iPlayer.

It’s worth noting that recordings already on users’ boxes will remain watchable – the new rules only apply to recordings made from the activation date of August 27 onwards.

Furthermore, this only applies to those who use the box’s “Internet Mode” – under the traditional Aerial Mode, you will still be able to record and watch BBC programmes as before (but an aerial and good reception will be required, as always).

A Puzzling Implementation

Here’s where things get a bit strange. BBC programmes will still be “recorded” to the box’s hard drive and take up storage space.

However, users won’t be able to watch these recordings directly from the hard drive. Instead, when you try to play a recording, it’ll stream from iPlayer.

This approach seems counterintuitive and wasteful of storage space and likely stems from some technical limitations of the box’s operating system.

Therefore, the advice moving forward seems clear: rather than “recording” BBC programmes, it may make more sense to simply add them to the box’s Watchlist.

This will achieve the same result – access to the programme via iPlayer – without unnecessarily occupying space on the Pro Box’s hard drive.

A Growing Trend In TV Recording

This change in BBC content handling follows a similar change implemented for ITV channels in November 2023.

At that time, BT TV (now EE TV) announced that customers using Internet Mode would no longer be able to fast-forward through advert breaks on ITV channels, even for recorded programmes.

This aligned the functionality with ITV’s streaming app, ITVX (as well as with other broadband-based streaming devices) but disappointed many users who were accustomed to ad-skipping on their recordings.

These changes are gradually eroding the unique selling point of EE TV’s Pro Box and its Internet Mode – the ability to record to local storage channels and programmes streamed via broadband.

But EE TV is certainly not alone in this, following the trend that is slowly taking away the ability to actually record programmes.

The gradual shift towards streaming has been the driving force behind this change, and it’s becoming increasingly apparent with each passing year that recordings will eventually go the way of the Dodo.

Gone are the days when Freeview recorders with built-in hard drives were the go-to choice for TV enthusiasts. Popular models have been discontinued, and even new launches (like the Manhattan T4-R) feel like the swan song of the Freeview recording era.

The rise of broadband-based devices like Sky Stream and Sky Glass, which aim to eventually replace Sky Q, has also contributed to the demise of recording.

These devices lack local storage and instead rely on limited cloud recording and streaming directly from broadcasters.

The launch of Freely, the broadband-based successor to Freeview and Freesat from Everyone TV, further exemplifies this trend.

Freely aims to transform free TV viewing but notably lacks any recording functionality, making viewers entirely dependent on the availability of content in broadcasters’ streaming libraries.

And perhaps most frustratingly for viewers, the ability to skip adverts is also disappearing.

With VHS tapes, Tivo and Freeview recorders, skipping adverts was a breeze. But with streaming, ad-skipping is often a premium feature that comes at an extra cost.

And then there’s the long-term availability. With recordings, one can keep a recorded programme indefinitely, even after it’s long gone from any of the streaming platforms. 

As EE TV follows the industry trend, it’s becoming increasingly clear that the days of traditional TV recording are numbered, fundamentally changing how we consume and control our television content.

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